Jpn. J. Infect. Dis., 56, 8-11, 2003

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Original Article

Prevalence of Antibody against Hepatitis E Virus in Various Species of Non-Human Primates: Evidence of Widespread Infection in Japanese Monkeys (Macaca fuscata)

Makoto Hirano, Xin Ding, Huy Thien-Tuan Tran, Tian-Cheng Li1, Naokazu Takeda1, Tetsutaro Sata, Shin Nakamura2 and Kenji Abe*

Department of Pathology and 1Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 162-8640 and 2Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Aichi 484-8506, Japan

(Received December 18, 2002. Accepted February 7, 2003)

SUMMARY: We screened 495 serum samples from 20 species of non-human primates for the antibody against hepatitis E virus (HEV). Anti-HEV IgG was detected in 84 of 232 (36.2%) Japanese monkeys, 2 of 19 (10.5%) cynomolgus monkeys, 3 of 83 (3.6%) rhesus monkeys, and 1 of 1 (100%) Taiwanese monkey, respectively. These results suggest that HEV is circulating among monkeys belonging to the genus macaca. A high prevalence of anti-HEV IgG was observed in Japanese macaques (M. fuscata) despite the fact that Japan is non-endemic for hepatitis E. It is possible that HEV can be transmitted from Japanese macaques to humans. Further, the rate of antibody positivity was found to increase with age in Japanese macaques. Seropositive macaques were found throughout Japan, but the seroprevalence rate differed among geographic regions.



*Corresponding author: Mailing address: Department of Pathology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Toyama 1-23-1, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan. Tel: +81-3-5285-1111 ext. 2624, Fax: +81-3-5285-1189, E-mail: kenjiabe@nih.go.jp


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